Expanding mandrel for feed reels



R- RUNNER EXPANDING`-MANDREL FOR FEED REELS Filed April 22, 1946 RAY INVENTOR BRUNNER Patented Sept. 6, 1949 EXPANDING MANDREL FOR FEED REELS Ray Brunner, Economy Township, Beaver County, Pa., assignor to Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application April 22, 1946, Serial No. 664,142

3 Claims. (Cl. 242-72) This invention relates to an expanding mandrel for feed reels such as are used, for example, in tinplate manufacture. By way of illustration, it may be stated that large quantities of tinplate are now made by continuous electrolytic processes, the tinned strip being coiled at the exit end of the tinning line. The tinned strip is generally quite wide and the coils are very large, usually weighing several tons. For many uses the strip must be cut up into sheets. This is usually done by feeding the strip from the coils through a cutting line embodying a rotary shear. The coils are carried by a feed reel for this purpose. For satisfactory operation it is necessary that the coil be firmly engaged within its eye, so that the strip will be adequately supported and feed smoothly to the cut-up shear.

Tinplate is usually quite thin-.0085 to .010 inches-and a common defect of many reel heads is that they mar the strip, particularly at the edges.

My invention provides an expanding mandrel which grips the coil within the eye quite independently of the strip edges, holds the coil firmly, corrects any out-of-roundness which it may have acquired in handling, and does not mar even the innermost wrap of the coil. It is readily applicable to existing feed reel mechanisms, simple and rugged in construction, and very easily operated with a minimfum of lost time.

In the accompanying drawings, illustrating a present preferred embodiment of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a feed reel to which my improved mandrel has been applied;

Fig. la is a detailed view to enlarged scale of the dotted line portion of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section to enlarged scale showing a portion of the mandrel and of the feed reel mechanism.

Referring first to Fig. 1, I have illustrated a feed reel consisting of a base 2 carrying heads 3 and t which may be moved toward or away from one another by an electric motor 5. The motor 5 is shown connected to a drive shaft 6 carrying pinions 'l meshing with gears 8 and driving threaded shafts 9 of opposite hand. The shafts 9 Work in nuts II) carried by the heads 3 and l, so that actuation of the motor 5 simultaneously moves the heads toward or away from one another.

Each of the heads 3 and 4 carries an arbor II in combination radial and thrust bearings I2 and It, so that the arbor II is free to rotate but cannot move endwise. These arbors may be connected to brakes (not shown) or motors (not 2 shown), as may be desired, depending upon Whether the user Wishes to exert a drag on the material or wishes to pay it out by positive rotation of the arbors Il.

A head, indicated generally by the reference character I4, is keyed to the inner end of each arbor Il. Each head consists of a hub I5, a cylindrical body I6 and a ange I1. A ring I8 of elastic, expansible material, such as rubber, surrounds the body I6 and abuts the flange II. A slip-ring or pressure member IS, slidable on the body I 6, engages the end face of the ring I8 opposite the end engaged by the flange I1. The slip-ring I9 is held in place by a locking ring 20. It will be noted that the slip-ring I9, in the position shown in solid lines in Fig. 2, projects axially beyond the end of the body I6 and the locking ring 20.

The rubber ring I8 is recessed, as indicated at 2|, to facilitate inward movement of the slipring I9.

The outside diameters of the flange I1, the rubber ring I8 and the slip-ring I9 are all substantially the same. This minimizes attrition of the rubber ring when coils are being placed, and insures that the heads may be moved to their final coil-engaging positions, as more fully described below, without engaging or damaging the strip edges A saddle 22, Well known in the art, is located approximately at the center of the base 2 and is so constructed and arranged as to support and elevate the coils C.

In placing a coil on the feed reel, it is first rolled onto the saddle 22, and the saddle is raised until the axis of the coil is at approximately the same height as the axis of the heads I4. At this time the heads are spaced apart, as shown in solid lines in the drawings. The motor 5 is then actuated so as to move the heads 3 and 4 toward one another. As the movement continues, the heads I4 enter the open eye of the coil and the end faces of the two slip-rings I9 come into engagement with one another. Continued movement of the heads 3 and 4 toward one another causes the sliprings I9 to compress and expand the rubber rings I8, as shown in dot and dash lines in Fig. 1a. This expansion of the rubber rings I 8 causes them to engage the inner wrap of the coil, firmly gripping it without injury and effectively removing any out-of-roundness which may exist. It will be noted from the dot and dash lines of Fig. 1a that the strip edges play no part in the operation. The coil may be irregular and successive coils may be of different widths without in any way affecting the operation. There is no danger of mutilation of the edges or other spoilage of the strip.

I have illustrated and described a present preferred embodiment of the invention, but it will be understood that it may be otherwise embodied within the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. Mandrel mechanism for feed reels comprising two coaxial supporting heads adapted to lie within theaeye of a coil to be supported, means for moving the heads toward and away from one another, a block of elastic material, e. g. rubber, mounted on each head and so arranged that it will engage the inner surface of the coil when deformed by compression axially of the heads, and a pressure member for each head operatively engaging the block of elastic material thereon, the pressure members being adapted for mutual enga'gement when the heads are moved together and being so mounted that relative longitudinal movement between the pressure members and their respective heads may occur after such engagement, the head-moving means being effective for continuing the movement of the heads toward one another after such engagement, whereby the elastic blocks are expanded to grip the inside of the coil.

2. Mandrel mechanism for feed reels comprising two coaxial supporting heads adapted to lie within the eye of a coil to be supported, means for moving the heads toward and away from one another, a. block of elastic material, e. g. rubber,

mounted on each head and so arranged that it will engage the inner surface of the coll when deformed by compression axially of the heads, a slip ring mounted on each head for sliding movement, the slip rings having portions extending axially toward one another beyond the heads upon which they are mounted and being adapted for mutual engagement when the heads are moved toward one another, each slip ring operatively engaging the block of elastic material carried by the head upon which the slip ring is mounted, the headmoving means being effective for continuing the movement of the heads toward one another after the slip rings engage one another, whereby the elastic blocks are expanded to grip the inside of the coil.

3. Mechanism according to claim 1 characterized by the fact that the blocks of elastic material are of a diameter as great as that of the heads upon which they are mounted.

RAY BRUNNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,518,026 Van Sluys Dec. 2, 1924 2,066,659 Templeton et al J an. 5, 1937 2,177,577 Mikaelson Oct. 24, 1939 

